The present invention relates to controlling and monitoring the position of an awning or shading system.
It is customary for shading systems, awnings or other comparable facilities, such as roll-up gates, roll-up shutters, etc., to have a type of suspended element or awning fabric which is wound onto a shaft and which can be more or less completely unwound from this shaft.
Aside from shading systems that are actuated in an entirely manual manner, which will not be the subject of further discussion herein, it is known prior art for the shaft or roller on which the awning fabric or any other web of fabric providing the shading is wound to be driven by an electric motor, which is switched off automatically in the limit positions of the awning. For this purpose, known electrically controllable awnings have corresponding limit switches which are customarily of electro-mechanical design and which must be adjusted as precisely as possible during installation in order to avoid blockage of the drive motor.
More highly automated control systems are known in conjunction with shading systems or awnings, and the term "awning" will be employed exclusively hereafter, without restricting reference to other applications of the present invention. When these more highly automated control systems are in the automatic mode, they extend the awning as a function of whether or not the sun is shining, with the effect of the sunshine being able to be determined by means of suitable photosensors or similar means.
In this connection, it is also known practice to make retraction or extension of an awning dependent upon the wind velocity, in addition to the presence of sunshine. Should the wind velocity exceed a stipulated value, which corresponds to an excessive wind load acting upon the quantity of awning fabric extended, the awning drive motor control unit is controlled in such a manner as to fully retract the awning. Since the known control unit can operate only in accordance with the "awning fully extended/awning fully retracted" principle, it poses the disadvantage that the primary function of the awing as a sun-shading system can often not be satisfied due to the rapid response of the control unit to protect the fully extended awning fabric against damage, even if the wind is light.
In another connection, it is already known practice (German Patent Disclosure Document 3,806,733) to dispose a sensor array to monitor and/or control a roll-up shutter sequence of pulses for every suspended element in that individual slats of the suspended element of a roll-up shatter have soft- or permanent-magnetic inserts adjacent to the sensor, with the sensor responding to them in the form of a reed switch, thus generating a sequence of pulses as the suspended element travels past the sensor. This sequence of pulses is compared with a sequence of pulses that is stored in a microprocessor, with the control signals required for switch-off in the respective limit positions being derived from the comparison. Analysis of the sequence of pulses that is generated by the travel of the suspended element enables individual adjustment to be simplified and might enable automatic compensation to be made for any lengthening of the suspended element which occurs over the course of time; however since this known monitoring and control drive system deals merely with the problems that result in connection with roll-up shutters, it does not address awning-typical problems which result from sunshine and/or wind velocity.
It is the object of the present invention to increase the utilization period of an awning, even if a wind force effect is determined which would otherwise cause the awning to be fully retracted, while simultaneously ensuring that the respective wind force effect always has priority, regardless of the mode in which the awning control system is being operated (automatic or manual), i.e. to ensure under all circumstances that wind forces acting upon the awning or the awning fabric will not damage the awning or the awning fabric.